90-903: Eurogroup Working Group ( EWG ) is an advisory body to the Eurogroup of the European Union . It is composed of representatives of the euro area member states of the Economic and Financial Committee (EFC), the European Commission and the European Central Bank . The President of the Eurogroup Working Group is Tuomas Saarenheimo , who entered the job in April 2020 and is also the President of
180-515: A 'multi-lingual talking shop'." Its development since its foundation shows how the European Union 's structures have evolved without a clear 'master plan'. Tom Reid of The Washington Post has said of the union that "nobody would have deliberately designed a government as complex and as redundant as the EU". Even the Parliament's three working locations , which have switched several times, are
270-562: A President or his Commission, but the threat to do so has produced concessions to Parliament on the Commission's composition or on policy commitments. As described above, when the Barroso Commission was put forward, the Parliament forced the proposal to be withdrawn and changed to be more acceptable to Parliament. That pressure was seen as an important sign by some of the evolving nature of the Parliament and its ability to make
360-722: A branch of the European executive. On 15 April 2008 in Brussels, Juncker suggested that the eurozone should be represented at the International Monetary Fund as a bloc, rather than each member state separately: "It is absurd for those 15 countries not to agree to have a single representation at the IMF. It makes us look absolutely ridiculous. We are regarded as buffoons on the international scene." However Finance Commissioner Joaquín Almunia stated that before there
450-464: A great deal of indirect influence, through non-binding resolutions and committee hearings , as a "pan-European soapbox " with the ear of thousands of Brussels-based journalists . There is also an indirect effect on foreign policy ; the Parliament must approve all development grants, including those overseas. For example, the support for post-war Iraq reconstruction, or incentives for the cessation of Iranian nuclear development , must be supported by
540-496: A month, but sometimes there are additional sessions in Brussels, while the Parliament's committee meetings are held primarily in Brussels, Belgium. In practice, the Parliament works three weeks per month in Brussels and one week (four days) in Strasbourg. The Parliament, like the other EU institutions, was not designed in its current form when it first met on 10 September 1952. One of the oldest common institutions, it began as
630-619: A personal, local, national and also on a European level." while referring to Southern European countries affected by the European Debt Crisis . This statement led to strong reactions by many European figures, as Gianni Pitella , head of the Socialist group in the European Parliament (to which Dijsselbloem's party belongs) said "There is no excuse or reason for using such language, especially from someone who
720-420: A result of various agreements or lack of agreements. Although most MEPs would prefer to be based just in Brussels, where it conducts the bulk of its work, at John Major 's 1992 Edinburgh summit , France engineered a treaty amendment whereby the European Parliament's official seat is in Strasbourg. The body was not mentioned in the original Schuman Declaration . It was assumed or hoped that difficulties with
810-489: A text, which they do (or not) through successive readings up to a maximum of three. In its first reading, Parliament may send amendments to the Council which can either adopt the text with those amendments or send back a "common position". That position may either be approved by Parliament, or it may reject the text by an absolute majority , causing it to fail, or it may adopt further amendments, also by an absolute majority. If
900-413: Is an important principle. For the ones who keep zooming in on those two words my message might be inconvenient. [...] It won't end well with the eurozone if we keep breaking our previous agreements. [...] My choice of words was not right, I'm sorry if you took offense, but I'm still behind the message." European Parliament The European Parliament ( EP ) is one of the two legislative bodies of
990-624: Is an instrument which is applicable to a particular person or group. Institutions may also issue recommendations and opinions which are merely non-binding, declarations. The Parliament and the Council are also the Union's budgetary authority since the Budgetary Treaties of the 1970s and the Lisbon Treaty . The EU budget is subject to a form of the ordinary legislative procedure with a single reading giving Parliament power over
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#17327762704911080-583: Is common representation, a common political agenda should be agreed. In January 2010 Juncker indicated that the commission is to propose that the group become a member of the G20 . During the 2013 Economic crisis in Cyprus, Eurogroup proceeded towards the first bail-in approach towards the Cypriot banking sector, resulting in the confiscation of deposits of Cyprus' two main banks. Despite the lack of any visibility on
1170-524: Is however fluid; IMF personnel are sometimes allowed to be present at meetings. What remains unknown about this group is whether they allow observers to speak or speech by the observers is forbidden. Prior to the Lisbon Treaty , the Eurogroup had no legal basis. A formal legal basis was granted for the first time under the Lisbon Treaty when it came into force on 1 December 2009. Protocol 14 of
1260-600: Is seen as the birth of the modern European Parliament, with Parliament's 50 years celebrations being held in March 2008 rather than 2002. The three communities merged their remaining organs as the European Communities in 1967, and the body's name was changed to the current "European Parliament" in 1962. In 1970 the Parliament was granted power over areas of the Communities' budget , which were expanded to
1350-475: Is supposed to be a progressive". Manfred Weber , leader of the European People's Party group , tweeted "Eurozone is about responsibility, solidarity but also respect. No room for stereotypes". The Portuguese Prime Minister , António Costa , said his words were "racist, xenophobic and sexist" and that "Europe will only be credible as a common project on the day when Mr. Dijsselbloem stops being Head of
1440-837: Is the body's speaker and presides over the multi-party chamber. The five largest political groups are the European People's Party Group (EPP), the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D), Patriots for Europe (PfE), the European Conservatives and Reformists Group (ECR), and Renew Europe (Renew). The last EU-wide election was held in 2024 . The Parliament's headquarters are officially in Strasbourg , France, and has its administrative offices in Luxembourg City . Plenary sessions are normally held in Strasbourg for four days
1530-576: The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe . The liberals gave support after Barroso gave them a number of concessions; the liberals previously joined the socialists' call for a delayed vote (the EPP had wanted to approve Barroso in July of that year). Once Barroso put forward the candidates for his next Commission, another case of MEPs opposing a particular nominee arose. Bulgarian nominee Rumiana Jeleva
1620-552: The Bolkestein directive in 2006. In practice, most legislation is adopted at the first reading stage after the Parliament and the Council, having set out their initial positions, then negotiate a compromise text. These negotiations take place in so-called "trilogue" meetings, in which the Commission is also present. In a few areas, special legislative procedures apply. These include justice and home affairs, budget and taxation, and certain aspects of other policy areas, such as
1710-599: The Common Assembly of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). It was a consultative assembly of 78 appointed parliamentarians drawn from the national parliaments of member states, having no legislative powers. The change since its foundation was highlighted by Professor David Farrell of the University of Manchester : "For much of its life, the European Parliament could have been justly labelled
1800-566: The European Council in 1992. It stated the Parliament would retain its formal seat in Strasbourg, where twelve sessions a year would be held, but with all other parliamentary activity in Brussels. This two-seat arrangement was contested by the Parliament, but was later enshrined in the Treaty of Amsterdam . To this day the institution's locations are a source of contention. The Parliament gained more powers from successive revisions of
1890-602: The European Union and one of its seven institutions . Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts European legislation, following a proposal by the European Commission . The Parliament is composed of 720 members (MEPs), after the June 2024 European elections, from a previous 705 MEPs. It represents the second-largest democratic electorate in
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#17327762704911980-581: The High Representative . MEPs did not manage to get everything they demanded. However, they got broader financial control over the new body. In December 2017, Politico denounced the insufficient racial diversity among Members of the European Parliament. The subsequent news coverage contributed to create the Brussels So White movement to campaign to rectify this situation. On gender balance, some 37 percent of MEPs were women in
2070-493: The Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform of Ireland . The ministers meet in camera a day before a meeting of the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) of the Council of the European Union . They communicate their decisions via press and document releases. The group is related to the Council of the European Union (only Eurogroup member states vote on issues relating to
2160-548: The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe or Pan-African Parliament which are appointed. After that first election, the parliament held its first session on 17 July 1979, electing Simone Veil MEP as its president. Veil was also the first female president of the Parliament since it was formed as the Common Assembly. As an elected body, the Parliament began to draft proposals addressing
2250-500: The right of initiative (i.e. the right to formally initiate the legislative procedure) in the way that most national parliaments of the member states do, as the right of initiative is a prerogative of the European Commission. Nonetheless, the Parliament and the Council each have the right to request the Commission to initiate the legislative procedure and put forward a proposal. The Parliament is, in protocol terms,
2340-463: The "first institution" of the European Union (mentioned first in its treaties and having ceremonial precedence over the other EU institutions), and shares equal legislative and budgetary powers with the Council (except on a few issues where special legislative procedures apply). It likewise has equal control over the EU budget . Ultimately, the European Commission, which serves as the executive branch of
2430-426: The 1980s, before it was given any formal right to veto their appointment. Since it became an elected body, the membership of the European Parliament has expanded when new nations have joined (the membership was also adjusted upwards in 1994 after German reunification ). Following this, the Treaty of Nice imposed a cap on the number of members to be elected: 732, later raised to 751 by the Treaty of Lisbon . Like
2520-539: The 1992 Treaty of Maastricht , the Member States gave the Parliament the right to approve or reject an incoming Commission. In the 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam , they gave it the right to approve or reject an incoming President of the Commission. In 2004, following the largest trans-national election in history, the European Council proposed as Commission President a candidate, José Manuel Barroso , from
2610-564: The 2014-19 Parliament and 40 percent in the 2019-24 Parliament, a greater proposition than in most national Parliaments in Member States In January 2019, MEPs supported proposals to boost opportunities for women and tackle sexual harassment in the European Parliament. In 2022, four people were arrested because of corruption. This came to be known as the Qatar corruption scandal at the European Parliament . In October 2023,
2700-612: The British would be resolved to allow the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe to perform legislative tasks. A separate Assembly was introduced during negotiations on the Treaty as an institution to counterbalance and monitor the executive while providing democratic legitimacy. The wording of the ECSC Treaty demonstrated leaders' desire for more than a normal consultative assembly by allowing for direct election and using
2790-418: The Commission accountable, rather than being a rubber stamp for candidates. Furthermore, in voting on the Commission, MEPs also vote along party lines, rather than national lines, despite frequent pressure from national governments on their MEPs. This cohesion and willingness to use the Parliament's power ensured greater attention from national leaders, other institutions and the public – reversing
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2880-539: The Commission's powers but did agree to respond within three months. Most requests are already responded to positively. During the setting up of the European External Action Service (EEAS), Parliament used its control over the EU budget to influence the shape of the EEAS. MEPs had aimed at getting greater oversight over the EEAS by linking it to the Commission and having political deputies to
2970-473: The Commission; and the right to question members of those institutions (e.g. "Commission Question Time " every Tuesday). Regarding written and oral questions, MEPs voted in July 2008 to limit questions to those within the EU's mandate and ban offensive or personal questions. The Parliament also has other powers of general supervision, mainly granted by the Maastricht Treaty . The Parliament has
3060-490: The Council does not approve these, then a " Conciliation Committee " is formed. The committee is composed of the Council members plus an equal number of MEPs who seek to agree a compromise. Once a position is agreed, it has to be approved by Parliament, by a simple majority. This is also aided by Parliament's mandate as the only directly democratic institution, which has given it leeway to have greater control over legislation than other institutions, for example over its changes to
3150-421: The Council has the power in some intergovernmental matters). In Community matters , this is a power uniquely reserved for the European Commission (the executive). Therefore, while Parliament can amend and reject legislation, to make a proposal for legislation, it needs the Commission to draft a bill before anything can become law. The value of a right of initiative has anyway been questioned by noting that in
3240-501: The EFC. Previously, the posts had been held by Hans Vijlbrief and Thomas Wieser . Formally the Eurogroup Working Group is a formation or a sub-group of the EFC. Gradually, the EWG "became a key venue for policy debates, reflecting the rise of the Eurogroup as the leading coordination forum of the euro area ". Eurogroup The Eurogroup is the recognised collective term for
3330-524: The EU treaties, notably through the extension of the ordinary legislative procedure (originally called the codecision procedure), and the right to approve international agreements through the consent procedure. In 1999, the Parliament forced the resignation of the Santer Commission . The Parliament had refused to approve the Community budget over allegations of fraud and mis-management in
3420-520: The EU's Commission-led international negotiations and have a right to information on agreements. Parliament did not secure an explicit vote over the appointment of delegation heads and special representatives for foreign policy, but it was agreed that they will appear before parliament after they have been appointed by the High Representative . Parliament wanted a pledge from the Commission that it would automatically put forward legislation when parliament requests. Barroso considered this an infringement on
3510-403: The EU, is accountable to Parliament. In particular, Parliament can decide whether or not to approve the European Council's nominee for President of the Commission , and is further tasked with approving (or rejecting) the appointment of the Commission as a whole. It can subsequently force the current Commission to resign by adopting a motion of censure . The president of the European Parliament
3600-471: The Eurogroup and apologises clearly to all the countries and peoples that were profoundly offended by his remarks". Former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi also called on Dijsselbloem to quit, saying that "If he wants to offend Italy, he should do it in a sports bar back home, not in his institutional role". In a reaction Dijsselbloem said: "Everyone knows that I didn’t say that all southern Europeans spend their money on drinks and women. That’s not what
3690-476: The Eurogroup in January 2010, Juncker emphasised the need to broaden the scope of the Eurogroup's business. In particular in terms of co-ordinating economic policies and representation. Juncker proposed creating a small secretariat consisting of four to five civil servants to prepare the group's meetings. However, although France and Spain support such plans, Germany fears that strengthening the group might undermine
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3780-412: The Eurogroup is Paschal Donohoe , the former Minister for Finance of Ireland . In September 2004, the Eurogroup decided it should have a semi-permanent president who would be appointed for a term of two years. Finance Minister and then Prime Minister of Luxembourg Jean-Claude Juncker was appointed to be the first president of the Eurogroup, mandated from 1 January 2005 until 31 December 2006, and
3870-478: The Eurogroup was a significant factor in the formation of the DiEM25 movement to "re-democratize Europe", to which Varoufakis belongs. NGO Transparency International has also repeatedly called for an overhaul of the governance of the Eurogroup. The European Ombudsman has even opened a case on the matter, demanding more transparency. Among all those critics, here are concrete examples of democratic shortcomings of
3960-553: The Eurogroup: In 2008, in light of the 2008 financial crisis , French President Nicolas Sarkozy (speaking at the European Parliament as the outgoing president of the European Council ) called the Eurogroup to be replaced by a "clearly identified economic government" for the eurozone, stating it was not possible for the eurozone to go on without it. The eurozone economic government would discuss issues with
4050-481: The European Central Bank, which would remain independent. This government would come in the form of a regular meeting of the eurozone heads of state and government (similar to the European Council ) rather than simply the finance ministers which happens with the current Eurogroup. Sarkozy stated that "only heads of state and government have the necessary democratic legitimacy" for the role. This idea
4140-446: The European Commission. A notable example was on the Bolkestein directive in 2006, when the Parliament voted by a large majority for over 400 amendments that changed the fundamental principle of the law. The Financial Times described it in the following terms: That is where the European parliament has suddenly come into its own. It marks another shift in power between the three central EU institutions. Last week's vote suggests that
4230-484: The European Council having to make its proposal to Parliament in light of the results of the European elections. Barroso gained the support of the European Council for a second term and secured majority support from the Parliament in September 2009. Parliament voted 382 votes in favour and 219 votes against (117 abstentions) with support of the European People's Party , European Conservatives and Reformists Party and
4320-585: The Franco-German intergovernmental plan, stating that community institutions should perform that role. In 2017, a number of voices including Pierre Moscovici, Emmanuel Macron and Jean-Claude Juncker have called for the Eurogroup to formally chaired by the European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs and the Euro . This would constitute a step towards formalizing the Eurogroup as
4410-399: The Parliament adopted a resolution to condemn "Hamas' despicable terrorist attacks against Israel". The Parliament and Council have been compared to the two chambers of a bicameral legislature. However, there are some differences from national legislatures ; for example, neither the Parliament nor the Council have the power of legislative initiative (except for the fact that
4500-612: The Parliament. Parliamentary support was also required for the transatlantic passenger data-sharing deal with the United States. Finally, Parliament holds a non-binding vote on new EU treaties but cannot veto it. However, when Parliament threatened to vote down the Nice Treaty, the Belgian and Italian Parliaments said that if it did so, they would veto the treaty on the European Parliament's behalf. With each new treaty,
4590-487: The President according to the treaties. Following the approval of the Commission President, the members of the Commission are proposed by the President in accord with the member states. Each Commissioner comes before a relevant parliamentary committee hearing covering the proposed portfolio. They are then, as a body, approved or rejected by the Parliament. In practice, the Parliament has never voted against
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#17327762704914680-652: The banks' credentials and balance sheets, Eurogroup decided to utilise deposits of the two banks for a bail-in. The process is not completed yet. However, it has been criticized by some in the EU as an attack on private property. In March 2017, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the president of the Eurogroup at the time, told the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung "As a Social Democrat, I attribute exceptional importance to solidarity. But those who call for it also have duties. I cannot spend all my money on drinks and women and then hold my hand up for help. That principle applies on
4770-442: The chair of the Eurogroup mirrored that of the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union , except where the Council presidency was held by a non-eurozone country, in which case the chair was held by the next eurozone country that would hold the Council presidency. In 2004 the ministers decided to elect a president and in 2008, the group held a summit of heads of state and government, rather than Ministers of Finance, for
4860-409: The commission. The two main parties took on a government-opposition dynamic for the first time during the crisis which ended in the Commission resigning en masse, the first of any forced resignation, in the face of an impending censure from the Parliament. The Parliament had always had the right to dismiss the European Commission in a vote of censure, but it initially had no role in its appointment. In
4950-444: The directly elected MEPs, in spite of their multitude of ideological, national and historical allegiances, have started to coalesce as a serious and effective EU institution, just as enlargement has greatly complicated negotiations inside both the Council and Commission. In 2007, for the first time, Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini included Parliament in talks on the second Schengen Information System even though, in this field at
5040-432: The entire budget (before 2009, its influence was limited to certain areas) on an equal footing to the Council. If there is a disagreement between them, it is taken to a conciliation committee as it is for legislative proposals. If the joint conciliation text is not approved by the Council, the Parliament may adopt the budget definitively, but only by a three-fifths majority. The Parliament is also responsible for discharging
5130-550: The euro crisis, this also led the Eurogroup to suffer from the lack of accountability and limited democratic oversight. Hence a growing number of critics by various stakeholders against the undemocratic aspects of the Eurogroup. In 2017, the Commissioner Pierre Moscovici described the Eurogroup as "a pale imitation of a democratic body." and former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis vocally denounced its "outrageous opacity". The non-transparency of
5220-626: The euro in the ECOFIN) and was formalised under the Treaty of Lisbon . The Eurogroup, formerly known as the Euro-X and Euro-XI in relation to the number of states adopting the euro, was established at the request of France as a policy co-ordination and consultation forum on eurozone matters. The December 1997 European Council endorsed its creation and the first meeting was held on 4 June 1998 at Senningen Castle in Luxembourg . To begin with,
5310-429: The eurozone, only those states using the euro (the Eurogroup countries) are permitted to vote on it. This vastly informal nature has led to a number of controversies, criticisms and debates on the governance of the monetary union. Because of its minimalist legal basis, the Eurogroup is mostly an informal body with very large discretionary powers. Though such nature may have allowed decisiveness in decision making during
5400-408: The first time since 1994 . The voting age is 18 in all EU member states except for Malta , Belgium , Austria and Germany , where it is 16, and Greece , where it is 17. The European Parliament has legislative power in that the adoption of EU legislation normally requires its approval, and that of the Council, in what amounts to a bicameral legislature. However, it does not formally possess
5490-556: The first time. This became known as the Euro summit and has held meetings irregularly during the financial crisis. Since the beginning of the monetary union, its role has grown in regards to the euro's economic governance. The fact the group meets just before the Ecofin council means it can pre-approve all Ecofin's decisions on eurozone affairs. In 2009 the Treaty of Lisbon formalised the group and its president. The current president of
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#17327762704915580-519: The fiscal aspects of environmental policy. In these areas, the Council or Parliament decide law alone after consulting the other (or with its consent). There are different types of European Union law#Legislation . The strongest act is a regulation , an act or law which is directly applicable in its entirety. Then there are directives which bind member states to certain goals which they must achieve. They do this through their own laws and hence have room to manoeuvre in deciding upon them. A decision
5670-489: The functioning of the EU. For example, in 1984, inspired by its previous work on the Political Community, it drafted the "draft Treaty establishing the European Union" (also known as the 'Spinelli Plan' after its rapporteur Altiero Spinelli MEP). Although it was not adopted, many ideas were later taken up in other treaties. Furthermore, the Parliament began holding votes on proposed Commission Presidents from
5760-507: The implementation of previous budgets based on the annual report of the European Court of Auditors . It has refused to grant discharge only twice, in 1984 and in 1998. On the latter occasion it led to the resignation of the Santer Commission ; highlighting how the discharge power gives Parliament a great deal of power over the Commission. Parliament also makes extensive use of its budgetary, and other powers, elsewhere; for example in
5850-571: The independence of the European Central Bank . In June 2012, the Estonian minister of finance Jürgen Ligi was being considered as a possible successor for Juncker. In January 2013, Juncker however hinted that his likely successor would be Jeroen Dijsselbloem of the Netherlands , who was appointed second president of the Eurogroup on 21 January 2013. On 13 July 2015, Dijsselbloem was reelected. On 9 July 2020, Paschal Donohoe of Ireland
5940-457: The informal meetings of the finance ministers of the eurozone —those member states of the European Union (EU) which have adopted the euro as their official currency . The group has 20 members. It exercises political control over the currency and related aspects of the EU's monetary union such as the Stability and Growth Pact . The current president of the Eurogroup is Paschal Donohoe ,
6030-435: The institution such as more speaking time for rapporteurs, increased committee co-operation and other efficiency reforms. The Lisbon Treaty came into force on 1 December 2009, granting Parliament powers over the entire EU budget , making Parliament's legislative powers equal to the Council's in nearly all areas and describing Parliament's vote on an incoming Commission President Commission President as an "election", with
6120-536: The issue of a uniform voting systems to be decided at a later date. For its sessions the assembly, and later the parliament, until 1999 convened in the same premises as the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe : the House of Europe until 1977, and the Palace of Europe until 1999. In 1979, its members were directly elected for the first time . This sets it apart from similar institutions such as those of
6210-585: The largest political party (the EPP). The Parliament approved him by 431 votes to 251. However, when it came to the vote on the Commission as a whole, MEPs raised doubts about some of the nominees following their performance in the public hearings of them conducted by Parliament's committees. Most notably, the Civil Liberties committee rejected Rocco Buttiglione for the post of Commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security over his views on homosexuality. That
6300-457: The national legislatures of the member states 85% of initiatives introduced without executive support fail to become law. Yet it has been argued by former Parliament president Hans-Gert Pöttering that as the Parliament does have the right to ask the Commission to draft such legislation, and as the Commission is following Parliament's proposals more and more Parliament does have a de facto right of legislative initiative. The Parliament also has
6390-407: The other institutions, the Parliament's seat was not yet fixed. The provisional arrangements placed Parliament in Strasbourg , while the Commission and Council had their seats in Brussels. In 1985 the Parliament, wishing to be closer to these institutions, built a second chamber in Brussels and moved some of its work there despite protests from some states. A final agreement was eventually reached by
6480-526: The power to set up a Committee of Inquiry, for example over mad cow disease or CIA detention flights – the former led to the creation of the European veterinary agency . The Parliament can call other institutions to answer questions and if necessary to take them to court if they break EU law or treaties. Furthermore, it has powers over the appointment of the members of the Court of Auditors and
6570-497: The powers of the Parliament, in terms of its role in the Union's legislative procedures , have expanded. The procedure which has slowly become dominant is the " ordinary legislative procedure " (previously named "codecision procedure"), which provides an equal footing between Parliament and Council. In particular, under the procedure, the Commission presents a proposal to Parliament and the Council which can only become law if both agree on
6660-425: The previous decline in turnout for the Parliament's elections. The Parliament also has the power to censure the Commission by a two-thirds majority which will force the resignation of the entire Commission from office. As with approval, this power has never been explicitly used, but when faced with such a vote, the Santer Commission then resigned of their own accord . There are other control instruments, such as:
6750-493: The representatives of the Ministers with responsibility for finance of the Member States whose currency is the euro and of the Commission. Article 2 : The Ministers of the Member States whose currency is the euro shall elect a president for two and a half years, by a majority of those Member States. Furthermore, the treaty amended the Council of the EU's rules so that when the full Ecofin council votes on matters only affecting
6840-479: The requirement of Commission to submit reports to the Parliament and answer written and oral questions from MEPs; the requirement of the President-in-office of the Council to present its programme at the start of their presidency ; the obligation on the President of the European Council to report to Parliament after each of its meetings; the right of MEPs to make requests for legislation and policy to
6930-470: The setting up of the European External Action Service , Parliament had a de facto veto over its design as it has to approve the budgetary and staff changes. The President of the European Commission is proposed by the European Council on the basis of the European elections to Parliament. That proposal has to be approved by the Parliament (by a majority of members of the Parliament) who thereby "elect"
7020-530: The term "representatives of the people". Its early importance was highlighted when the Assembly was given the task of drawing up the draft treaty to establish a European Political Community . By this document, the Ad Hoc Assembly was established on 13 September 1952 with extra members, but after the failure of the negotiated and proposed European Defence Community (French parliament veto), the project
7110-406: The time, MEPs only needed to be consulted on parts of the package. After that experiment, Frattini indicated he would like to include Parliament in all justice and criminal matters, informally pre-empting the new powers they were due to gain in 2009 as part of the Treaty of Lisbon . Between 2007 and 2009, a special working group on parliamentary reform implemented a series of changes to modernise
7200-464: The treaty lays out only two articles to govern the group; Article 1 : The Ministers of the Member States whose currency is the euro shall meet informally. Such meetings shall take place, when necessary, to discuss questions related to the specific responsibilities they share with regard to the single currency. The Commission shall take part in the meetings. The European Central Bank shall be invited to take part in such meetings, which shall be prepared by
7290-479: The whole budget in 1975. Under the Rome Treaties, the Parliament should have become elected. However, the Council was required to agree a uniform voting system beforehand, which it failed to do. The Parliament threatened to take the Council to the European Court of Justice ; this led to a compromise whereby the Council would agree to elections, but with each Member State using its own electoral system, leaving
7380-490: The world (after the Parliament of India ), with an electorate of around 375 million eligible voters in 2024. Since 1979, the Parliament has been directly elected every five years by the citizens of the European Union through universal suffrage . Voter turnout in parliamentary elections decreased each time after 1979 until 2019 , when voter turnout increased by eight percentage points, and rose above 50% for
7470-399: Was based on the meeting of eurozone leaders in 2008 who met to agree a co-ordinated eurozone response to the banking crisis. This is in contrast to an early proposal from former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt who saw the European Commission taking a leading role in a new economic government, something that would be opposed by the less integrationist states. Sarkozy's proposal
7560-784: Was dropped. Instead, the European Economic Community and Euratom were established in 1958 by the Treaties of Rome . The Common Assembly was shared by all three communities (which had separate executives) and it renamed itself the European Parliamentary Assembly . The first meeting was held on 19 March 1958 having been set up in Luxembourg City, it elected Schuman as its president and on 13 May it rearranged itself to sit according to political ideology rather than nationality. This
7650-575: Was elected to be the fourth President of the Eurogroup taking office on 13 July 2020. On 5 December 2022, Donohoe was re-elected, with his second term beginning on 13 January 2023. The ECB President , Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner and Chairman of the Eurogroup Working Group also attend the meetings. Members of the EU who choose not to participate in the Eurozone have been excluded from observer status. The membership
7740-547: Was forced to step down by Parliament due to concerns over her experience and financial interests. She only had the support of the EPP which began to retaliate on left wing candidates before Jeleva gave in and was replaced (setting back the final vote further). Before the final vote on the Commission, Parliament demanded a number of concessions as part of a future working agreement under the new Lisbon Treaty. The deal includes that Parliament's president will attend high level Commission meetings. Parliament will have an observer seat in
7830-443: Was in the interview and it wasn’t my message. The anger about the interview is anger about eight years of policies to deal with the crisis. [...] I would have rephrased it otherwise probably. But it was my way of making clear that solidarity is not charity. It's not for nothing that the aid programs of the European emergency fund are accompanied by strict conditions: You get very cheap loans provided you take action to restore order. That
7920-465: Was opposed by Eurogroup chair Jean-Claude Juncker who did not think Europe was ripe for such a large step at the time and opposition from Germany killed off the proposal. Merkel approved of the idea of an economic government, but for the whole of the EU, not just the eurozone as doing so could split the EU and relegate non-eurozone states to second class members. In his 2011 State of the Union address , Commission President José Manuel Barroso opposed
8010-609: Was re-appointed for a second term in September 2006. Under the Lisbon Treaty, this system was formalised and Juncker was confirmed for another term. The presidency has helped strengthen the group, since before Juncker's appointment the Eurogroup was only present at meetings in the European Parliament . Since the position of President of the Eurogroup was created, the president has attended the European Parliament Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs every six months. After his reappointment as President of
8100-494: Was the first time the Parliament had ever opposed an incoming Commissioner and, despite Barroso's initial insistence upon Buttiglione, the Parliament forced Buttiglione to be withdrawn. A number of other Commissioners also had to be withdrawn or reassigned before Parliament voted to allow the Barroso Commission to take office. The Parliament also became more assertive in amending legislative proposals put forward by
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